


Assessment

by pickleplum



Series: Owl and Dragon [30]
Category: Pacific Rim (2013)
Genre: Athene Noctua Verse, Gen, Protective Siblings, Protectiveness, Siblings, Wingfic, companion to Athene Noctua, winged!Hermann
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-09
Updated: 2014-03-09
Packaged: 2018-01-15 05:02:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 625
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1292380
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pickleplum/pseuds/pickleplum
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Hermann's siblings have a late night chat about the new (sort of) man in Hermann's life.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Assessment

**Author's Note:**

> Fits in between chapters 16 and 17 of "[Athene Noctua](http://archiveofourown.org/works/1118037)".

Bastien tumbles off the couch where he was sleeping, thumbs on his chiming tablet, and yawns as the Skype window opens. "Karla? What the hell. It’s two a.m. here. Why are you calling?" He rubs his eyes.

"What do you think of him?"

"Of who?"

"Manny’s boyfriend, you idiot," Karla says as she rolls her eyes. "Why else would I be jacking you out of bed at this hour? Or off the couch, in your case."

"Karla … ," Bastien whines.

"Oh shut up, _Hasi_. Go get your brother. I know he’s awake." Bastien heaves an exasperated sigh as he leaves the room and returns a minute later with an equally annoyed and sleepy-looking Dietrich.

"Bastien says you demand to talk to us."

"I need to hear the news," she says with excitement. "Bastien told me me this morning you two were taking Manny and his new boyfriend to dinner."

Dietrich glares at Bastien, who responds with a very Gottlieb shrug. " _You_ try and keep a secret from her, D. You know how she is." Dietrich snorts and Karla squawks indignantly. "Why are you asking us, anyway? _You’re_ the one who’s met Newt before," Bastien continues.

"I haven’t seen him in years, though. Only emails and a Skype or two lately," Karla says. "Can I safely assume Newt’s still … umm … unusual?" she asks.

Bastien laughs and Dietrich smiles as he says, "Put mildly, Karla. Between him and Bastien, Manny and I could barely get a word in at dinner. They twitter like birds." Bastien smacks his brother’s arm.

"So they’re the same as always," Karla says, ignoring Bastien’s indignant cry of ‘Hey!’ "How’s Manny?"

"A little anxious," Dietrich begins, "but that’s not a surprise, as he’s speaking to the UN tomorrow. He looks good. He may even have gained a kilo or two. The end of the war has been good for him so far."

"Newt’s good for him, too. He’s almost as protective as D. And Manny trusts him enough to let him set bones and share his bed," Bastien adds.

"That’s great!" Karla exclaims. "It’s about damn time he found another person to really let in."

"Has he _ever_ really trusted anyone? Other than us?" Bastien asks.

The siblings pause to check their memories, sorting through the short list of their brother’s friends and past partners. Karla breaks the momentary quiet. "Maybe not. He’s come close, but, no, I don’t think he has. So what makes Newt different?"

Bastien answers, "You remember when Manny tried explaining Drift compatibility by talking about his married Russian pilot friends? He said they moved together, like they were nearly one person. He and Newt move like that. I don’t think they realize."

"Of _course_ they don’t," Karla says. "Manny doesn’t recognize anything positive others offer him even if they hit him with a yard arm. And Newt has all the social insight of a dim but hyperactive puppy. But once he gets his teeth in something, he doesn’t let go, even if he doesn’t quite understand _why_ he bit it in the first place."

"In other words, they’ll fumble around each other, wondering why they’re happy, and everything will be fine unless Manny panics," Dietrich says.

"Yeah, but I don’t think he’ll panic," Bastien remarks. "You saw him tonight. He hasn’t been that relaxed in decades. Not since the first day he came back from school. And this time there’s nothing Father can do to fuck it up for him."

"Thank god," Karla says.

"It’s about time _something_ good happened to him," Bastien declares.

Dietrich responds, "I don’t think the men who saved the world could go unrewarded by fate."

Karla rolls her eyes. "You’re such a Romantic."

"I’m an optimist, sister," Dietrich says with a small smile.

**Author's Note:**

> I have to giggle at Karla calling her 30-year-old brother "bunny".


End file.
